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Section 1005: EXTEMPORANEOUS PERSUASIVE SPEAKING (2008-2009 Constitution)
(a) PURPOSE OF THE CONTEST. The purpose of this contest is to train students to analyze a current issue, determine a point of view, and then organize and deliver extemporaneously a speech that seeks to persuade listeners to agree with that viewpoint. The objective is to reinforce the views of listeners who already believe as the speaker does, but even more so, to bring those of neutral or opposing views around to the speaker’s beliefs or proposed course of action. This oral contest should especially appeal to those who have a strong argumentative urge and who wish to advocate reforms or outline solutions for current problems.
(b) ENTRIES.
(1) Representation. Each participant school in all conferences may enter three students in the contest.
(2) Eligibility. Each contestant must be eligible under Subchapter M. Only students in high school are eligible for this contest. Contestants shall not compete in district in more than one extemporaneous speaking event in the same year. See Subchapter M and Section 1000, Speech Eligibility Rules.
(c) PREPARATION.
(1) Sources. Students should prepare for this contest by reading a daily newspaper and any of the many news magazines, searching the Internet, and listening to radio and television news broadcasts. Schools will periodically be notified of available publications and lists of topics through the UIL web site. Helpful magazines include Time, Newsweek, U.S. News and World Report and other news publications. Useful newspaper sources include The New York Times, The Christian Science Monitor and major Texas newspapers. There are also numerous news oriented sites on the Internet, some of which are linked from the UIL web site (www.uil.utexas.edu/academics/speech).
(2) Topics.
(A) Topics for extemporaneous persuasive speaking shall be based on current news events. They shall include topics from state, national and international levels. They will be chosen from the general areas of political, social, economic, educational, and cultural interests. Practice topics will be posted from time to time on the UIL web site.
(B) The topics will be worded so as to elicit persuasive speeches rather than informative speeches but under no condition is it the obligation of the League to provide a “persuasive topic.” That obligation is remanded to the speaker. The contest requires a contestant to convince or persuade the audience and judges to accept the speaker’s point of view. The contestant is required to take a position in answering a specific topic question.
(C) Topics for the preliminary and final rounds at district and regional meets are provided by the League office.
(3) Resource. The contest is discussed in more detail in the UIL Informative and Persuasive Speaking Handbook available through the League office and on the UIL web site. Coaches are responsible for reviewing this publication in advance of the contest.
(d) CONDUCTING THE CONTEST.
(1) Sections. If more than eight contestants are entered, preliminary and final rounds must be held. See Section 1003 (b) (1).
(2) Drawings.
(A) The League office shall furnish the director in charge with topics. The district topics will be delivered in a sealed envelope. The envelope will contain enough complete sets of the topic questions for each section of preliminaries (i. e., if there are two preliminary sections, two copies will be needed; if there are three sections, three copies will be needed, etc.). A short time before the contest begins, the contest director should open the sealed envelope. A separate envelope or receptacle will be needed for each preliminary section. Each copy of the topics must be cut by the contest director, leaving one topic on each slip. One complete set of separated topic questions should be put into the envelope or receptacle for each section of preliminaries. Each contestant shall draw five topic slips, and select one of the five. The topic chosen should be recorded by the director, and the remaining four slips returned to the receptacle from which they were drawn. The slips should be mixed before the next contestant draws, and so on. The speakers should be allowed to draw at approximately 10 minute intervals.
For example:
Order Draw Speak
Speaker One 1:00 1:30
Speaker Two 1:10 1:40
Speaker Three 1:20 1:50
If preliminaries are necessary, the process shall be repeated for selection of topics for the final contest. Topics for preliminary and final rounds shall be provided by the League office.
(B) In the preliminary rounds of this event, all sections are to be run simultaneously. That is, if three preliminary sections are required by the sectioning rules previously mentioned, all three are to be conducted at the same time; if two are required, both will be run at the same time, etc. All first speakers will draw at the same time; all second speakers will draw at the same time, etc. Accordingly, all speakers shall speak in their respective rooms at the same time designated for their speaking positions. This will require a number of judges as well as contest rooms equal to the number of sections required by the League rules. See Section 1003 (b) (1).
(C) The contest director is responsible for destroying all unused topics.
(3) The Preparation Period: Procedure and Timing. In conducting this contest, rooms will be needed for drawing topics, preparing speeches, and presenting speeches in each section. Informative speaking and persuasive speaking preparation rooms should be combined to allow students from the same school to share files. Contestants may draw topics and prepare in the same large room if necessary. A preparation room monitor shall be on duty to make certain that the contestants work quietly in preparing their speeches. After contestants draw topics, they should not discuss them with others. At the end of half an hour the contestant shall leave the preparation room with only the topic slip and no more than one notecard that is no larger than 3 x 5 inches to go to the contest room to deliver the speech. Contestants should report directly to their contest room without conversing or consulting with anyone. In the meantime, the director will have called other speakers at about 10 minute intervals to draw topics, and so on until the contest is completed.
(4) Restrictions in Preparation Room. To assist in preparing the speech, the speaker may use magazines, newspapers, journals and other published source materials, and copies made by a copier in compliance with copyright laws, as long as the material cannot be considered an outline of a speech. Prepared notes, extemp speeches, debate evidence handbooks and briefs are not allowed. Published material from computer online data services may be used. The URL source of the published downloaded material should be included. Any source material resembling the outline of a speech is not to be used by the speaker to prepare the contest speech. Typed or hand-written materials may not be taken into the preparation room, except in the form of an index file which has been prepared by the student for the sole purpose of convenience in finding references to specific topics. A computer or other electronic retrieval device shall not be taken into the preparation room.
(5) Restriction on Notes. The speaker may use only one notecard that is no larger than 3 x 5 inches when delivering the speech. No limit is placed on the quantity of information on that one card. All source citations orally delivered in the speech should be legitimate.
(6) Speech Topic and Type. The contestant must deliver a persuasive speech on the topic selected.
(7) Length of Speeches. Persuasive speeches shall not be longer than seven minutes. There shall be no minimum time. The speaker may complete only the sentence in progress without disqualification, after the allotted time has expired. The responsibility of keeping within the seven-minute time limit rests with the contestant.
(8) Timekeeper and Signal Standards. A timekeeper should be provided for each contest to notify the contestants of the amount of time remaining from their total allotted time. The timekeeper should sit where they can be seen by contestants and should demonstrate before each contestant begins speaking the type of time signals to be used. See Section 1003 (b) (4).
(e) DUTIES OF THE CONTEST DIRECTOR.
(1) Announcement of Topics. The practice of having speakers announce their own topics before beginning to speak should be discouraged. Topics should be announced in one of two ways:
(A) The contestant may write the topic on the board and give the slip to the room chair or judge; or
(B) The chair, timekeeper, or director in charge of the contest, or a designated representative, may announce the topic drawn by each speaker in the contest room to insure that the judge or judges have the topic before the speaker begins.
(2) Audiences and Interruptions. Spectators are encouraged to attend the speeches. Contest directors must not permit any interruption of the speakers during the contest. Cheering is not permitted. Coaches and contestants may be audience members.
(3) Recording. Schools and/or individuals are prohibited from recording (audio and/or video) speech contests. The UIL reserves the right to record for educational purposes.
(4) Judging. Judging must be by an odd number of judges or by one judge. At minimum, judges should be high school graduates. A copy of the judging instructions provided by the League office shall be given to each judge. Contest directors are responsible for explaining these instructions to the judges. Judges should be instructed not to discuss their decisions with other individuals or judges while judging a given contest. See Section 1003 (b) (2).
(5) Questions. Questions must be made to the contest director before the decision of the judges is rendered. The decisions of the meet officials in these matters are final.
(6) Ranking Contestants. See Section 1003 (b).
(7) Unofficial Results. Until students and coaches have had a chance to look at the rankings and the individual evaluation sheets during the announced ballot verification period, results should be announced as unofficial.
(8) Ballot Verification Period. See Section 1003 (b) (6). This procedure is mandatory.
(9) Official Results. See Section 1003 (b) (7).
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